The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced four members of the Al-Shabaab terrorist group to death by hanging for their involvement in the June 5, 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, which claimed more than 40 lives and left over 100 others injured.

Justice Emeka Nwite convicted Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik and Abdulhaleem Idris on a nine-count terrorism charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS), while acquitting a fifth defendant, Momoh Abubakar, for lack of evidence.

The court held that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that the convicts were members of a terrorist cell operating in Kogi State and actively participated in the attack, during which worshippers were targeted with improvised explosive devices and AK-47 rifles.

The prosecution presented 11 witnesses and 23 exhibits, including confessional statements and forensic evidence, linking the defendants to the deadly assault.

Reacting to the judgment, Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, described the verdict as a victory for justice and the rule of law, while the Oba Ajibade Ogunoye commended the conviction and called for the prosecution of all those connected to the attack.

The Catholic Bishop of Ondo Diocese, Jude Arogundade, welcomed the judgment but noted that it could not erase the pain of the tragedy or restore the lives lost in one of the deadliest attacks in the state’s history.